The Carters' third child, Donnel Jeffrey ("Jeff"), is born in New London, Connecticut.

November 1952

Carter is sent to the Naval Reactors Branch of the Atomic Energy Commission in Washington, D.C. Rosalynn moves with the kids to Schenectady, New York, where Jimmy will work on the U.S.S. Seawolf, one of the first two U.S. nuclear submarines.

December 12, 1952

A nuclear reactor in Chalk River, Canada, suffers a meltdown. Carter is a member of the team dispatched to the site.

Jimmy Carter National Historic Site

Earl Carter

1953

Jimmy's father, Earl Carter, dies of pancreatic cancer.

October 9, 1953

Carter is honorably discharged from the Navy. The Carters move back to Plains, Georgia, to take over his father's business.

May 17, 1954

The Supreme Court rules against segregation in public schools in Brown v. Board of Education. Chief Justice Earl Warren delivers the landmark opinion.

1961

The Carters find themselves near the front lines of the civil rights movement when Martin Luther King Jr. comes to nearby Albany, Georgia, prompting resistance from segregationists.

March 26, 1962

In ruling on Baker vs. Carr, the Supreme Court establishes what becomes known as the "one man, one vote" rule. It will have a major impact on Georgia politics, which up to this time had been largely under the control of local political bosses.

Jimmy Carter Library

Carter election poster

October 1, 1962

Carter tells Rosalynn he plans to run for the state senate.

October 16, 1962

Carter loses the primary by 139 votes to Homer Moore, and decides to ask for a recount.

November 2, 1962

A recount committee rules in Carter's favor and orders a new election, which Carter will win by 831 votes four days later.

Columbus Ledger-Enquirer

Carter is sworn in

January 14, 1963

The General Assembly session opens in Atlanta. Jimmy Carter is sworn in as state senator.

Carter is sworn in as governor of Georgia. In his inaugural address, he shocks the audience and gains national attention by unequivocally declaring that "the time for racial discrimination is over."

February 15, 1971

Carter signs a bill into law that gives the governor authority to propose government reorganization.

February 21, 1971

At midnight, after a long and bitter political battle, the Georgia Assembly passes Carter's government reorganization plan.

May 31, 1971

Governor Carter appears on the cover of Time magazine, as a representative of the "New South." His politics contrast with those of Southern segregationists like George Wallace.

July 8, 1972

Carter arrives at the Democratic National Convention in Miami. Though he had been identified with the movement to stop the nomination of George McGovern, behind the scenes Carter lobbies -- unsuccessfully -- to be McGovern's running mate.

October 17, 1972

Carter discusses running for president in 1976 with his advisers, including Hamilton Jordan, Peter Bourne, and Gerald Rafshoon.

National Archives

Richard Nixon

November 5, 1972

President Richard Nixon wins re-election handily over Democrat George McGovern.

1973

Governor Carter appears on the television show What's My Line? The panel is unable to guess his job.

March 5, 1973

Democratic Party chairman Robert Strauss appoints Carter national campaign chairman for the Democratic National Committee. It is the opening Carter needs to forge national connections.

May 1973

The Carters travel to Europe and Israel. Jimmy meets New York governor Nelson Rockefeller and impresses him so much that Rockefeller recommends Carter for the newly-founded Trilateral Commission, an organization that seeks to bring together North American, Western European, and Japanese opinion leaders.

May 4, 1974

Senator Ted Kennedy is the featured speaker at the unveiling of a portrait of former secretary of state and Georgia native Dean Rusk at the University of Georgia. Carter upstages Kennedy -- and impresses Rolling Stone journalist Hunter S. Thompson -- with an impassioned speech about the importance of politics as a vehicle for social justice.

September 23, 1974

Senator Kennedy announces he will not run for president.

November 1974

A Harris poll lists 35 potential presidential candidates. Jimmy Carter is not one of them.

My American Experience

Who was your favorite 20th-century American president? Was it FDR? Kennedy? Reagan? Or one of the other 14 men who helped usher the United Sates through the 1900s? Who do you think was the most influential?